But what region should we seek, and should we go alone? Not quite all alike were the shell-fish eaters, and I knew of some, especially among the younger men, though some of them were mated, who might be desirous of such adventure. The blood of wandering ancestors was yet in their veins and, in some cases, showed a little of itself despite degeneration. I would talk with these. I did so soon and found some twoscore of the clan who would accompany us gladly, among whom were five women who were mated to five men among them. We prepared most swiftly for this great adventure, for, now that it was secretly resolved upon, all were most impatient. Carrying our weapons and a store of dried meat and fish--though we thought to live easily on the game we met--the band gathered one night at an appointed place in the forest and thence silently took its departure. In which direction we should go was a subject of grave debate for a time, but it was at last decided that we should press northward to Skagen Rock and thence cross the narrow strait to the mainland in the two light boats we carried. Especially was this determined upon because I had already travelled over much of the way, and Freya knew the course for the remainder of the journey. We were doubtful about the southward way, for we were ignorant of where the land ended there, not knowing that it was but a part of the mainland and would be our shorter course to the regions we were seeking, which were the lands from which our people had once come. Our decision was most unfortunate. How could we know? As it chanced, though, all came out as we had expected for the first part of our long march. We avoided the shore of the Kattegat lest we stumble upon other clans of shell-fish eaters, and reached the Skagen Rock and made the passage to the land beyond in safety. Then we took up the march toward the south. For days we travelled, finding abundant game and suffering no hardships worth the mentioning. As we progressed the climate became warmer, the trees changed more to oak and beech, and we were more and more rejoiced that we had left the now far distant village where was so little life. Then came some apprehension, when we discovered signs of human beings in the trails we came upon, and we moved more cautiously. We could but guess what manner of men these might be. There were stories of tribes upon this borderland who were most ferocious and merciless and who spared none of those whom they might at any time overcome.